The three largest mobile networks in Vietnam - Viettel, MobiFone and VinaPhone – said that the telecom market has become saturated. This year they will not concentrate on attracting new subscribers but develop services and increase the profit.

Viettel aims to have seven million new subscribers in 2011. According to this firm, the telecom market still has around 16 million potential subscribers and it expects to attract half of them.

However, it seems to be a difficult target so Viettel also sets the second target to raise its turnover and profit: developing new services.

An expert said that in the past the mobile network operators would reduce their prices to attract customers. However, telecom charges can’t be cut down any further this year because many input expenses have increased in 2010, including salary, accommodation, equipment, etc. As a result, the growth of the number of new subscribers will be lower.

VinaPhone and MobiFone aim to attract five million new subscribers this year and they will also focus on developing new services and improving their quality to raise their income and profit.

By the end of January 2011, Vietnam had over 157.6 million mobile subscribers, nearly double the number of the country’s population. However, less than 50 percent of them are active.

PV